Zhu Zhixing's mother froze, staring blankly at Xie Sui. The boy before her looked both familiar and unfamiliar.
Her mouth opened. After the fear in her bloodshot eyes, she broke free, and crazed hatred flared up in them again.
She cried and screamed, "It was you! It was you! If that bitch of a mother of yours hadn't seduced him, how would that old bastard of mine have fallen for it back then? How would he have fallen down the stairs and broken his leg? And now this happens! Your whole family is a bunch of jinxes! Jinxes!"
After Xie Sui pulled Song Yu upright, Song Yu came back to his senses too. Then he heard the shrew's abuse, and anger instantly welled up inside him.
"Are you done?"
Not even caring that he was still in Xie Sui's arms, Song Yu raised his head, his expression showing something of a teeth-gritting fury.
"I think you're the jinxes. Xie Sui must have had eight lifetimes of rotten luck to run into you people in the first dozen or so years of his life."
Zhu Zhixing's mother was now on the verge of a mental breakdown. Her eyes stayed fixed on Xie Sui, eerie in their madness, as she went on hatefully, "You destroyed our family. I won't let you have it easy either. I'll haunt you for the rest of my life."
Song Yu laughed in anger, his light-colored eyes reflecting the dim light in the stairwell, his manner defiant and mocking. "Please don't, ma'am. I'm afraid you'd give me nightmares."
When he started arguing, he radiated hostility without even needing to make a face.
"Just listen to what you said. You look like a monster, your man's a pervert, and you blame someone else for being good-looking."
"You-!"
Zhu Zhixing's mother was so angry she became incoherent, her face flushed crimson as she pointed a trembling finger at Song Yu. "Hanging around a whore's kid-you're no good either, you ill-bred thing! I'm not the sick one! It's that little bitch Xie Sui who has-!"
Remembering Xie Sui's three years in middle school, Song Yu's expression instantly turned cold. "Try saying another word."
Zhu Zhixing's mother wasn't afraid of him. "AIDS! He has AIDS! That filthy disease! The kind that kills-ah-!"
A woman's cry of pain rang through the stairwell.
Someone grabbed Zhu Zhixing's mother by the hair, pinned her against the wall, and punched her hard. But it wasn't Song Yu or Xie Sui. It was a man reeking of alcohol who had rushed into the stairwell at some point.
Something was wrong with one of his legs, and he walked with a limp, but there was nothing hesitant about the punches he landed on the woman. His hair was disheveled, his face covered in stubble. Gripping Zhu Zhixing's mother by the hair, he roared himself hoarse. "You stinking bitch! So what if I have AIDS? Applying for a transfer behind my back? You want a divorce too? I'll beat you to death before you can divorce me! Even after I get out of prison, I won't let you off! You'll never get away from me in this lifetime!"
Zhu Zhixing's eyes were red. "Dad!"
Zhu Zhixing's mother burst into uncontrollable sobs, screaming for help, her cries especially wretched in the stairwell.
Song Yu stood stunned for two seconds before his vision suddenly went dark.
Xie Sui had abruptly covered his eyes. The people tearing into each other before him were his enemies, but the boy's tone was casual. "Don't look. It'll dirty your eyes."
A sudden ache rose in Song Yu's heart.
What kind of people were this family named Zhu? Was this the environment Xie Sui had lived in before? He was only a high school student.
He bit his lip and raised a hand to pull Xie Sui's hand away.
"No, I want to watch. It feels satisfying."
But there was no satisfaction in Song Yu's voice, only anger, along with hurt and heartache he hadn't even noticed himself.
Xie Sui's lips curved slightly. When his dark eyes turned toward that family again, his gaze was cold and deep.
The last time Song Yu had brought him to that wall, it had stirred some dark memories from his past. He wasn't Song Yu, after all, with methods of revenge so simple and childish.
Once he decided to deal with the Zhu family, they were destined to be dragged into hell.
Zhu Zhixing's mother's screams alerted the homeroom teacher.
Coming downstairs, the teacher saw Zhu Zhixing's father gripping Zhu Zhixing's mother by the hair and desperately smashing her against the wall.
In the dark stairwell, it was like a horror movie.
The young homeroom teacher went pale with fright. Not daring to provoke the drunken man who had lost all reason, the teacher called the school security guards.
The guards came afterward, and so did the police.
Out of his mind, Zhu Zhixing's father even tried to attack the police. He was pinned to the ground and forced into a police car.
Zhu Zhixing's mother's face was bruised and swollen. Beaten within an inch of her life, she had cried until she could barely breathe.
By now, Zhu Zhixing's tears had dried. He stood to one side like a walking corpse, watching the police take notes with pen and paper. Overnight, his life had been turned upside down, and his parents had both revealed a vicious side he had never seen before. He felt as if he were drowning in the sea, unable to see the way ahead, numb and hopeless.
"I'm hungry."
Song Yu didn't want to keep looking at this upsetting family. After staying there so long, his stomach finally started growling.
Xie Sui had been waiting for him all along. He smiled. "Okay, let's go get something to eat first."
Song Yu said, "I'll get my test papers first."
Xie Sui was almost amused into laughter by his dedication to studying.
"Okay."
After Song Yu left.
Xie Sui's smile faded, and the last trace of gentleness disappeared from him. He stood tall beneath the light, his expression indifferent, his profile clean-cut and handsome, his bearing elegant and distant.
He glanced at the clock on the wall. His eyes were dark abysses, but his expression was weary and bored.
Zhu Zhixing's eyes were vacant.
His world collapsed, and a hand suddenly strangled his soul, dragging it into a suffocating abyss.
He merely stared ahead in bewilderment. "It was you, wasn't it, Xie Sui?"
Hearing his voice, Xie Sui turned his head.
With Song Yu absent, he couldn't even be bothered to pretend at that last bit of harmless innocence. His lips curved faintly. "Yes."
This was the last straw that broke the camel's back. Zhu Zhixing's eyes went red, his hands clenched into fists, and his whole body trembled.
But the day had dealt him too many blows. He had no strength left, and he began laughing like a madman. "The police came to arrest him today. They said my dad molested a female customer. They had surveillance footage and witnesses. In the afternoon, it wasn't just my mom-everyone on the street got texts with photos of my dad visiting prostitutes, and the medical report he'd hidden. Diagnosed with AIDS. Hahaha, AIDS." Three years of middle school, three years of spreading that rumor. He had never expected it to come back on himself in the end.
Zhu Zhixing's eyes were blood-red. "The moment I got the texts, I knew someone wanted to hurt us. Who hated me that much? It really was you. Only you!"
Xie Sui truly couldn't be bothered to put much thought into dealing with them. Remembering how Zhu Zhixing's mother had pushed Song Yu earlier, he smiled, composed and elegant. "Don't fall apart too soon."
His voice was calm. "This is only the beginning."
Zhu Zhixing no longer dared think about how Xie Sui, a high school student, could have the means to do all this. He merely covered his face in agony and slowly sank to his knees. "I was wrong, I was wrong, I was wrong. What will it take for you to let us go?"
Song Yu was already walking back with his test papers in his arms.
Xie Sui turned his head and quietly watched Song Yu. A smile began to spread across his face, the gentle, clear smile he ought to have worn at fifteen.
But his words were addressed to Zhu Zhixing.
Casual, cold, and dangerous.
"At least one person has to die before this ends, don't they?"
It was still early.
A deliberately arranged gambling trap, an enormous compensation payment, creditors coming to their door, a scandal everyone knew about.
When Zhu Zhixing's father got out of prison, his family's true nightmare would begin.
But he couldn't be bothered to devote any more energy to those things either.
Rather than spend time on these people, he would much rather enjoy the bright, warm high school life Song Yu had deliberately created for him.
"What do you want to eat?"
Song Yu was genuinely hungry. He was asking Xie Sui, but his eyes lingered on the barbecue stall.
Xie Sui glanced at him and spoke first. "No barbecue, no milk tea."
Song Yu: "..."
You've said everything already.
In the end, Song Yu obediently ate a proper meal.
When he had been kept in the office, he had messaged Auntie Bai to tell her not to make dinner that evening.
After eating out, on their way back to the apartment.
Having eaten and drunk his fill, Song Yu was in a good mood and started talking along the way. "It's good that Zhu Zhixing's transferring. Now we won't have to see that dumbass for all three years of high school. It'd be best if his whole family moved away. They're such an eyesore."
Xie Sui smiled. "Don't worry. His family will never appear in Jing City again in this lifetime."
Just mentioning that dumbass Zhu Zhixing made Song Yu angry. Last time, he had only let him off for Xie Sui's sake.
And today he had repaid kindness with malice, coming straight at them with blows and slander!
Then he thought of Xie Sui's habitual silence and endurance in the early part of Gentle Control.
Song Yu tugged at the corner of his mouth and decided to give him a proper lesson.
"When you deal with people like that from now on, don't forgive them so easily. Look, you let him off so easily last time. You only made him wipe off some writing before letting him go. And what happened? He came snapping at us like a madman today. I think his whole family's sick in the head!"
Forgive them easily?
Xie Sui found it amusing, but went along with him. "Okay. I won't forgive people so easily next time."
Song Yu was truly terrified that he would repeat his mistakes and get hurt like in the original novel. "And don't trust people easily. Don't become completely devoted to someone as a friend just because they're a little nice to you."
Holding back laughter, Xie Sui turned to look at him, a hint of amusement in his dark eyes. Yuyu, are you talking about yourself?
Naturally, Song Yu noticed nothing and continued, "Anyone who approaches you and acts friendly for no reason has ulterior motives! They might be coveting..." He stalled. After thinking for ages and recalling the traits of those three scum gongs, Song Yu said with certainty, "They might all be coveting your looks."
Xie Sui: "..."
Xie Sui burst out laughing.
His laughter made Song Yu a little embarrassed, and he snapped, "I'm being serious! Can you listen properly?"
Xie Sui asked him, "You too?"
Song Yu: "Huh?"
Xie Sui's smile was gentle. "Approaching me and acting friendly for no reason, harboring ulterior motives, coveting my-looks?"
He paused before the last word, sounding distinctly teasing.
Song Yu: "..." Fuck!!!
Song Yu wanted to explain, but the trap he had laid for himself was too secure for him to escape right away.
After opening his mouth for ages, he said guiltily, without much conviction, "I'm different from them."
Forget it. Might as well go for broke.
"Whether you believe it or not, I'm just different."
By the end, he was practically spouting nonsense with his eyes shut. "Didn't you ask me last time why I was so nice to you? I'm kind! Kindhearted! Don't you understand?"
Seeing the expression on his face, as though he had nearly angered himself to death, Xie Sui wickedly decided to add fuel to the fire. He said slowly, "Actually, it's okay if you covet my looks."
Song Yu: "..."
Song Yu: "..."
This conversation is over. Goodbye!
Angered by himself, he strode ahead, only to run into Gao Feng as they passed the cafeteria.
Gao Feng had just come out of the little shop beside the cafeteria, a bunch of lackeys trailing behind him and a cup of instant noodles in his hand. Sweeping his gaze around, he spotted Song Yu and Xie Sui too. After being lectured at length by the PE teacher and forced to write a three-thousand-word self-criticism, Gao Feng now saw Song Yu with all the fury of an enemy encounter.
"Well, well! You again!"
As luck would have it, Song Yu was in a bad mood too. He sneered. "What a coincidence. Here to collect the beating you missed this afternoon?"
Gao Feng: "..."
Gao Feng's lackeys: "..."
If he hadn't still been holding his cup of instant noodles, Gao Feng probably would have swung at him already.
Knowing he couldn't outargue Song Yu, he couldn't be bothered to try. He said menacingly, "Who beats whom is still up in the air."
Song Yu couldn't be bothered with bullshit. He had already learned that day that reasoning with people like this was useless. He raised an eyebrow. "How many of you are coming at me together?"
Just when he needed to vent his anger, someone had actually delivered himself to his door.
Gao Feng couldn't take it anymore.
It was the lackey beside him who held him back, whispering, "Boss, we've still got a fight with those Class Nine guys tomorrow. Save your strength, save your strength."
Gao Feng suppressed his anger, his eyes fixed on him. "Trash. You think I've got time to fight you?"
Song Yu scoffed and ignored him. Do school tyrants have schedules for fights these days?
One look at that face with its built-in taunting ability infuriated Gao Feng. His grip crushed a dent in his noodle cup as he raged, "But don't think I'm letting you off! Friday! This Friday! After school, at the Book Mountain Building outside the school gates! You and me! If you don't show, you're my grandson!"
Song Yu was busy studying. "Do I look like I'm paying you any attention?"
Gao Feng was beside himself with rage. "Fine! I'll be waiting there! If you don't come, you're Gao Feng's grandson! I just found out your name. Song Yu, right? Whether you come or not, you're losing face!"
Song Yu said, "Heh. If I don't come, you can still keep some dignity. If I actually do, you'll probably cry for two years."
He paid no more attention to Gao Feng's roars behind him.
Song Yu walked on. After snapping back at someone, his anger had more or less faded. He said good night to Xie Sui and went upstairs without looking back. His anger was gone, but he was still embarrassed!
After showering, he switched on his desk lamp, corrected the day's test papers against the answer key, and compiled his mistakes.
Song Yu checked the time on his phone. It was already eleven.
His gaze paused. Ma Xiaoding's messages were on the screen.
Song Yu tapped into the chat.
[Sadako Never Forgets the Well Digger: Brother Yu? Are you really that fierce?]
[Sadako Never Forgets the Well Digger: Your arranged fight with Gao Feng has already blown up.]
[Sadako Never Forgets the Well Digger: Want to check the forum?]
Song Yu: "..."
Brother Yu, who had decided to quit the internet and focus on studying, finally returned to the forum.
Song Yu always ignored that thread titled "A future vast as the sea, finding peace with Sui and Yu." If he could block it, he would absolutely be the first to do so.
There were other threads about him too, all kinds of speculation and confessions, floating on the front page.
[I'm going to die without Brother Yu]
[Big brother, come back and look at me qaq]
[A rational discussion of the possibility that Brother Yu is Song Yu]
Song Yu skimmed past them all.
Of course, there were plenty of other threads too-spam, flame wars, and complaints. It was a student forum, after all.
But tonight, the thread being bumped over and over was a fight challenge, with exactly the sort of over-the-top style found in old wuxia novels.
[Inside scoop: there's a follow-up to that unfinished fight in PE today. My friend's in Class Fifteen, and apparently Gao Feng already said in the class chat that he's arranged a fight with Song Yu on the roof of the Book Mountain Building on Friday.]
Original post: Tsk, Chen Zhijie suddenly turned over a new leaf and started studying. Gao Feng used to compete with him for the school tyrant spot all the time. I thought that with Chen Zhijie stepping down, the next school tyrant was a sure thing. Who knew a dark horse would appear in PE? I've watched some of the girls' videos on the forum, and Song Yu's moves don't look like he can't fight. But there seems to be a pretty big difference in their physical strength. Place your bets. Who wins?
1st floor: Obviously my hubby Brother Yu will win, hehehehe.
2nd floor: How many times do I have to say it? Song Yu isn't that dumbass troll Yu Whatshisname.
3rd floor: ? You can tell all that from the videos? Am I the only one enjoying the SuiYu sweetness? That basketball catch was way too doting.
4th floor: Derailing the thread again and again. Why is it always these two groups? Fujoshis and Yu haters, go love each other (knife) (knife).
5th floor: OP, I'll get us back on topic. I think Gao Feng. He was already famous for being good at fighting in his first year.
6th floor: Song Yu's all flashy moves with no substance. I'm betting on Gao Feng.
7th floor: Gao Feng +1
26th floor: Am I the only one betting on Song Yu? Never mind anything else-just for being good-looking, he gets my vote.